Cecelia Antoinette Bruton (November 24, 1949 – May 28, 2020), known professionally as Cecelia Antoinette or CeCe Antoinette, was an American actress, comedian, and writer.

Early life

Cecelia Antoinette Bruton was born a twin in

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, in 1949, the daughter of Cicero Hamilton Bruton Sr. and Naomi Hartman Bruton. Her mother was an actress, and her father worked for the railroad. She was educated in Hamilton Park schools, graduating from high school in 1968. She earned a bachelor's degree at the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma, United States. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two territories became the ...

. She was a member of

Alpha Kappa Alpha Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. () is an List of African American fraternities, historically African-American Fraternities and sororities, sorority. The sorority was founded in 1908 at Howard University in Washington, D.C.. Alpha Kappa Alpha ...

Career

Bruton began acting in Dallas and took acting classes in New York City. She appeared on Broadway in ''

Mule Bone ''Mule Bone: A Comedy of Negro Life'' is a 1930 play by American authors Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston. The process of writing the play led Hughes and Hurston, who had been close friends, to sever their relationship. ''Mule Bone'' was n ...

'', and in touring or regional companies of '' The Wake of Jeremy Foster'', ''The Member of the Wedding'', ''

The Ride Down Mt. Morgan ''The Ride Down Mt. Morgan'' is a play by Arthur Miller. Plot The play's central character is Lyman Felt, an insurance agent and bigamist who maintains families in New York City and Elmira in upstate New York. When he is hospitalized following ...

'', ''St. Lucy's Eyes,'' and '' Bronzeville''. On television, she had small roles in ''Law & Order'': ''Special Victims Unit'', ''

Scrubs Scrub(s) may refer to: * Scrub, low shrub and grass characteristic of scrubland * Scrubs (clothing), worn by medical staff * ''Scrubs'' (TV series), an American television program * Scrubs (occupation), also called "scrub tech," "scrub nurse," ...

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, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,

Godfather of Harlem ''Godfather of Harlem'' is an American crime drama television series that premiered on September 29, 2019, on Epix. The series is created by Chris Brancato and Paul Eckstein, and stars Forest Whitaker as 1960s New York City gangster Bumpy Johns ...

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,'' ''

A Black Lady Sketch Show ''A Black Lady Sketch Show'' is an American sketch comedy television series created by Robin Thede for HBO. The show consists of comedy sketches performed by a main cast of Black women, consisting of producer and creator Thede, Gabrielle Dennis, ...

Blue Bloods ''Blue Bloods'' is an American police procedural drama (film and television), drama television series that aired on CBS from September 24, 2010, to December 13, 2024, across 14 seasons and 293 episodes. Its main characters were members of the fi ...

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,'' ''

Mad Men ''Mad Men'' is an American historical drama, period drama television series created by Matthew Weiner and produced by Lionsgate Television. It ran on cable network AMC (TV channel), AMC from July 19, 2007, to May 17, 2015, with seven seasons ...

'', ''

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'', ''Girlfriends'', ''

Crossing Jordan ''Crossing Jordan'' is an American crime drama television series created by Tim Kring, that aired on NBC from September 24, 2001, to May 16, 2007. It stars Jill Hennessy as Dr. Jordan Cavanaugh, a crime-solving forensic pathologist employed ...

'', and ''

The Chris Rock Show ''The Chris Rock Show'' was a weekly, Friday night, late-night talk show featured on HBO. It was created by comedian and namesake Chris Rock and featured various guests. The show won an Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Variety or Music Program ...

''. Her film credits included appearances in ''After School'' (2008), '' Proud American'' (2008), '' Yes Man'' (2008), '' Dance Fu'' (2011), ''Different Flowers'' (2017), and '' Deadtectives'' (2018). Bruton published a book of poetry, ''Just as I am'', and a memoir, ''Brown Gal's Rising'', and an autobiographical one-woman show, ''Watermelon: Git It While It's Hot!''. She participated in the Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab in 1998, and performed at festivals about women in jazz in

Hartford Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

in 1999 and 2001. She was a member of the Women's Project Directors Forum. She taught theatre at various levels, including at the

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

and the New York City public schools.

Personal life

Cecelia Antoinette Bruton was a practicing Nichiren Shoshu Buddhist.

Death

She died in 2020, aged 70 years. She was honored posthumously at the Reel Sisters awards ceremony in November 2020.

References

External links

* Cecelia Antoinette's blog
''Brown Gal's Rising''
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Antoinette, Cecelia 1949 births 2020 deaths 20th-century African-American actresses 20th-century American actresses African-American female comedians African-American comedians University of Oklahoma alumni Alpha Kappa Alpha members Actresses from Dallas African-American Buddhists American Nichiren Buddhists 21st-century African-American writers 21st-century African-American actresses 20th-century American Buddhists 21st-century American Buddhists 21st-century American actresses American women comedians Comedians from Dallas 21st-century African-American women writers 21st-century American women writers Nichiren Shōshū